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Vilas County, Wisconsin: environmental and disease records

Cancer mortality in Vilas County is 149.4 deaths per 100,000 people per year against a U.S. rate of 143.2. Federal databases place 105 regulated facilities, sites and hazards inside the county, led by NPDES wastewater discharge permit (44), Gas station (mapped facility) (28), Brownfield property (12). EPA AirToxScreen estimates a lifetime cancer risk from outdoor air toxics of 10 in a million, driven mainly by formaldehyde.

Rates are age-adjusted per 100,000 people. A cancer signal is marked significant when the lower bound of its 95 percent confidence interval is above the U.S. rate. Facility counts use active federal records located inside the county boundary. Approximate county center: 46.0791, -89.4373.

How this county ranks in Wisconsin

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Cancer deaths and new cases versus the United States

Source: NCI and CDC State Cancer Profiles, both sexes, all ages. Sorted by the ratio of the county rate to the U.S. rate.

Cancer rates for Vilas County compared with the United States
Cancer	Measure	County rate	U.S. rate	Times U.S.	95% interval	Years
Kidney & renal pelvis	New cases	30.9	17.9	1.73xSignificant	21.6 to 43.2	2019-2023
Bladder	New cases	29.7	18.7	1.59xSignificant	22.7 to 39	2019-2023
Esophagus	New cases	6.1	4.6	1.33x	3.6 to 11.2	2019-2023
Brain & nervous system	Deaths	5.8	4.4	1.32x	3.3 to 10.8	2020-2024
Leukemia	New cases	17.5	14.5	1.21x	11.9 to 25.6	2019-2023
Lung & bronchus	New cases	62.5	51.8	1.21xSignificant	52.9 to 74.2	2019-2023
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	New cases	21.9	18.5	1.18x	15.9 to 30.4	2019-2023
All cancer	New cases	533.3	453.4	1.18xSignificant	499.1 to 569.7	2019-2023
Pancreas	New cases	14.6	13.9	1.05x	9.5 to 22.4	2019-2023
All cancer	Deaths	149.4	143.2	1.04x	133.3 to 167.5	2020-2024
Brain & nervous system	New cases	6.3	6.2	1.02x	3.7 to 11.5	2019-2023
Lung & bronchus	Deaths	29.6	30.2	0.98x	23.3 to 38.1	2020-2024
Liver & bile duct	New cases	8.4	8.7	0.97x	4.7 to 14.8	2019-2023
Melanoma of the skin	New cases	22.3	23.8	0.94x	15.6 to 31.7	2019-2023
Pancreas	Deaths	9.5	11.3	0.84x	6 to 15.5	2020-2024
Thyroid	New cases	10.6	13	0.82x	5.2 to 19.3	2019-2023

Mortality measures versus the U.S. county median

Source: County Health Rankings, built from CDC National Vital Statistics System death records. The comparison value is the median of all U.S. counties.

Mortality measures for Vilas County
Measure	County	U.S. median	Difference	Unit
Premature death	10,459.5	9,842.6	+6%	years of life lost before age 75 per 100,000
Life expectancy	76.5	75.3	+2%	years
Child mortality	89.6	59.8	+50%	deaths under age 18 per 100,000
Infant mortality	n/a	6.2	n/a	deaths under age 1 per 1,000 live births
Injury deaths	127.4	96.9	+31%	deaths per 100,000
Drug overdose deaths	27.3	28.6	-5%	deaths per 100,000

Air toxics and air quality

EPA AirToxScreen 2020

Lifetime cancer risk from outdoor air toxics: 10 in a million. EPA treats 100 in a million as the upper end of acceptable risk and 1 in a million as the goal.

Formaldehyde9.08 per million
Carbon Tetrachloride2.92 per million
Acetaldehyde0.91 per million
Benzene0.68 per million

EPA Air Quality Index 2025

Monitored on 199 days: 183 good, 1 unhealthy for sensitive groups or worse. Median AQI 36, peak 105.

Regulated facilities, sites and hazards by type

105 active records inside the county from EPA ECHO, TRI, Superfund, Brownfields, NPDES, EIA, FAA, FRA and corrections data.

NPDES wastewater discharge permit44
Gas station (mapped facility)28
Brownfield property12
Commercial airport4
Landfill (mapped facility)4
Wastewater plant (mapped facility)3
Auto repair or body shop (mapped facility)2
EPA air quality monitor1
Air permit holder (minor source)1
Airfield1
Public airport1
Hazardous waste transporter1
Scrapyard (mapped facility)1
TRI reporting facility1
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI)1

Highest-severity records

The 25 records with the highest Envyrofax severity in the county, with the agency identifier to cite in a records request.

Phelps Cast, Phelps
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Zinc (fume or dust), Copper, Lead. Reports carcinogens. 590 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 54554PHLPS2527H (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 6.6
Berntsen Foundry, Phelps
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110002339005 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.9
Lac Du Flambeau Indian Tribe, Lac Du Flambeau
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110010886014 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
Phelps Sanitary District No 1, Phelps
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110010887246 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Balko Trailer/Jump River Electric, Lac Du Flambeau
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110015331176 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Highway 70 Fireworks Stand, Lac Du Flambeau
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110038719474 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Highway 47 Salvage Yard, Lac Du Flambeau
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110038750241 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Former Patterson Property, Lac Du Flambeau
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110038750250 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Clear Lake Junkyard, Lac Du Flambeau
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110038750269 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
River Road Gravel Pit, Tire Dump #1, Lac Du Flambeau
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110038763905 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Munnomin Lake Trail, Tire Dump Site #2, Lac Du Flambeau
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110038763914 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Reservation Line Lake Trail, Tire Dump Site #3, Lac Du Flambeau
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110038763923 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Cop Shop Ba, Lac Du Flambeau
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110045012339 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Former Finish Line Services, Eagle River
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071964029 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Former Nagel Lumber, Land O Lakes
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071970582 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Former Northwoods Hospital, Phelps
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071978123 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Colonial House Laundromat Llc, Newbold
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110070012394 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 2
Lakeland/Noble F Lee Meml Fld, Minocqua-Woodruff
Commercial airport. O.
Record ID ARV (FAA / U.S. DOT)
Severity 2
Boulder Junction Payzer, Boulder Junction
Commercial airport. O.
Record ID BDJ (FAA / U.S. DOT)
Severity 2
Manitowish Waters, Manitowish Waters
Public airport. O.
Record ID D25 (FAA / U.S. DOT)
Severity 2
Eagle River Union, Eagle River
Commercial airport. O.
Record ID EGV (FAA / U.S. DOT)
Severity 2
Kings Land O' Lakes, Land O' Lakes
Commercial airport. O.
Record ID LNL (FAA / U.S. DOT)
Severity 2
Wastewater Plant
Wastewater plant (mapped facility). Mapped facility presence only; no compliance or exposure measurements.
Record ID relation/13461403 (OpenStreetMap contributors) Agency record
Severity 2
Wastewater Plant
Wastewater plant (mapped facility). Mapped facility presence only; no compliance or exposure measurements.
Record ID way/1316796542 (OpenStreetMap contributors) Agency record
Severity 2
Vilas County Landfill
Landfill (mapped facility). Mapped facility presence only; no compliance or exposure measurements.
Record ID way/290034830 (OpenStreetMap contributors) Agency record
Severity 2

Correctional facilities

Prisons, jails and corrections operations with an EPA facility record, and the drinking water and wastewater compliance attached to them.

No correctional facility with an EPA record is located in this county.

Discovery / public records

Records to request for Vilas County

Wisconsin state cancer registry
Cancer incidence counts by census tract or ZIP code, by cancer type and year (de-identified). Any cancer cluster inquiries or investigations in Vilas County, and their findings.
Wisconsin vital statistics office
Death certificate counts by cause of death and residence tract or ZIP code, and the years behind the mortality measures above.
Wisconsin health department, environmental epidemiology
Health consultations or assessments by ATSDR or the state health department covering the county, and any exposure investigations.
Wisconsin environmental agency and the U.S. EPA regional office
Compliance history, inspection reports, notices of violation, penalties and enforcement actions for each facility above, cited by EPA FRS registry ID.
Wisconsin drinking water program
Violation notices, sampling results and sanitary surveys for the public water systems serving the county, including any system serving a correctional facility.
Department of corrections or county sheriff
Water testing, grievances and environmental health inspections for the correctional facilities listed above.

Each Envyrofax address report includes a printable records request worksheet with the custodian and the exact request wording per finding.

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